


Of Sun-Kissed Skin and Private Beaches

by kaeorin



Series: Loki's Lullabies [47]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Beaches, Day At The Beach, F/M, Idiots in Love, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:47:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24138346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaeorin/pseuds/kaeorin
Summary: For likely-nefarious reasons, Tony proposes a day-trip to the beach. For absolutely mysterious reasons, Loki joins you.
Relationships: Loki (Marvel)/Reader
Series: Loki's Lullabies [47]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1678240
Comments: 9
Kudos: 270





	Of Sun-Kissed Skin and Private Beaches

It was, quite frankly, a miracle that Loki had even come out with you.

On a whim, Tony had arranged for a mass vacation: he’d told everyone to pack their bags, to bring a swimsuit and sunscreen, and to get ready to spend the day at a beach. You were still pretty sure that the whim happened mainly because he was actively trying to drive Pepper insane by ignoring the deadlines for business-type stuff, but you’d always kind of loved the beach, so you kept that to yourself.

Pretty much everyone fully expected Loki to refuse, but Thor must have had more sway over him than any of you could have expected, because he met up with you there at the jet right on time. You couldn’t ignore that little surge of excitement when you saw him, but you did your best not to let it show on your face. You liked him. A lot, actually. Like, it was a borderline silly crush. Thankfully, you were generally able to keep yourself under control and not give too many obvious hints. Loki rarely seemed interested in anything on Earth, let alone in you, and you weren’t sure you were prepared to face down the teasing remarks the rest of the team were sure to throw your way.

But he arrived with Thor, looking grumpy but...present. Thor hoisted both of their suitcases into his arms (much to Loki’s chagrin) and hauled them onto the jet. When he met your eyes, you gave him a quick smile, maybe feeling a little bit sheepish about the fact that he’d caught you staring, and then hurried to board as well. 

When you touched down, it was hard to keep from jumping up and bull-rushing the door in your excitement to get to the beach, but you managed. However, when everyone else finally got up and headed out, you did allow yourself to match their excited energy, flowing along and chatting animatedly with Wanda as you headed out onto the sand. In true Tony Stark fashion, it seemed he had discovered a private beach with a private landing pad. No one else was around in any direction. As someone who had grown up in the crowded press of people on...just normal beaches, that felt a little odd to you, but you quickly embraced it even as you spread out your towel under an expansive umbrella.

Someone else joined you. You were only vaguely aware of them spreading out their towel next to yours, but when they settled themselves down in the center of it, you looked up—and had to try not to do a double-take. It was Loki. He sat cross-legged on his towel with a book already open on his lap. He didn’t look at you even as your heartbeat began to pick up speed, and only continued thumbing through the pages.

“Hey,” you finally managed. “Come on. Are you just going to read all day?”

“Maybe just until it warms up a little.” 

He was right. Because of the change in time zones, it was significantly earlier here than it was in New York, and there was still almost the hint of a morning chill in the air. You nodded to yourself and kicked off your sandals so you could stretch out on your back. Morning chill or no, the sand had already begun to soak up some of the day’s warmth, and you relished the radiant heat against your back. It had been a long time since you’d felt anything like that. 

“Did you know...” Loki’s voice was unexpected, though welcome. Without opening your eyes, you turned your head towards him to show that you were listening. “The most venomous creature on your planet has been known to live near here?” The information sounded vaguely familiar, as though you had once known more about what he was saying, but you couldn’t recall any specifics. “Look.”

You opened your eyes. Loki had his hand stretched out towards you, and resting in his palm was a tiny yellowish octopus. You nearly flinched backwards, until you caught the shimmering edges that told you it was only one of his illusions. He was staring at an illustration in his book and bringing it to life in his hand. For you? The creature moved with surprising verisimilitude: it looked like the octopuses you’d seen in zoos and aquariums when you were a kid. How could he know that simply from the picture? 

“They’re tiny! That’s actual size, there. When they’re not threatened, they look like that,” he nodded towards his hand, “but when they sense danger, their skin actually flashes?” As if in illustration, the creature in his palm began to retreat from you, and brilliant blue rings began to flash in its skin. You couldn’t tear your eyes away. Things were slipping into place, now: the blue-ringed octopus was very dangerous, you remembered, but looking at this one in front of you, knowing that it couldn’t hurt you, you felt yourself smile. 

“If they bite you, they can paralyze you, make you lose your senses.” That had always been the most frightening part for you: the idea that something as small as this could suddenly and with very little warning drop you into a box without sound, without sight, without anything, the darkness pressing in on you until you finally just died. “They can kill you. And there’s no anti-venom.”

Loki looked over at you, and something in his eyes and smile made you think he was pleased to hear that you knew what he was talking about. “Indeed.” 

You sat up again, reaching out to touch the illusion in Loki’s hand before you could stop yourself. “Growing up, I always kind of wanted to see one. I think I wanted to befriend one. Octopuses are so smart, smarter than people, I bet, just in a different way. And I think the fact that I knew I _shouldn’t_ touch them made me desperately want to.” You felt a little silly, sharing all this with him, but no one else could hear you, so who cared?

“Well, here then.” Loki jerked his hand toward you. “Put your hand out. You won’t be able to touch this one, but I can put it in your hand.” 

Some strange part of you wanted to protest, wanted to ask why on earth he’d do something like that for you, but the rest of you just eagerly pressed your hand against his. Sure enough, the creature made its way into your palm. It was weightless, but you imagined that you could feel the gentle suction of its tentacles as it slid across your skin. You were beaming like an idiot, you knew—you could feel the ache in your cheeks as you grinned—but you couldn’t quite make yourself care. “Thank you, Loki. This is so cool.” You lifted your hand so you could be at eye-level with the creature. “He’s beautiful. You do amazing work.”

You felt him snort beside you, not quite a real laugh, but he apparently didn’t feel any need to explain himself. When you looked up at him above the octopus, he was already watching you intently.

A little while later, Loki had disappeared back into his book. The sun, however, was growing ever-warmer to you, and you eventually sought out help to put on some sunscreen. Clint, who was already taking care of Wanda’s back, had no problem with doing the same for you, and you laughed and chatted as he worked. Wanda only had a single vague memory of going to anything like a beach when she was very small, and even then, she only remembered hating the feel of wet sand between her toes. Her voice was wistful, and you knew she had to be thinking about her parents. You gave her space for a few moments, not wanting to disturb her, but then it became too much and you grabbed her hand to tug her into the water. She joined you, laughing, and it wasn’t long before you were both splashing and swimming, enjoying the bracing water against your skin. A pair of sharp green eyes watched you from the shade.

The ocean was enough. There wasn’t really any need for games or organization: you were more than happy just to enjoy your time here on your own. That didn’t stop some of the others from slipping into games of their own: mainly a disorganized attempt at something resembling water polo. Thor began a rousing—and noisy—bid to wrestle Steve under the water, and the men’s formidable strengths actually made it fascinating to watch. At one point, Bucky lifted Nat off of her towel, where she’d been happily sunbathing, and carried her into the water even as she tried to get herself free. That one made you laugh—hard, doubling over with your arms crossed protectively across your stomach. It wasn’t often that anyone caught Natasha off-guard, but there she was, soaked and glowering at Bucky and vowing to take him down at the next chance she got. Even Bucky seemed to shine with a golden light as he grinned at her and spread his arms in a shrug, telling her he was waiting.

The only one who didn’t join you was Loki. You kept searching your friends’ faces for his, and kept looking over at the towels when he was nowhere to be found. He was still reading. It wasn’t uncommon for him to keep himself separate from the others like this, but today it felt a little different. Everyone was taking advantage of the sun and the warmth. It felt like everyone could relax here, pretend for a little bit that the weight of the world—the very survival of the world, sometimes—wasn’t constantly resting on their shoulders. But Loki wasn’t getting that. 

When you all broke for lunch, he stayed right where he was. You remained relatively quiet as you ate, more than happy to let the others’ ebullient conversations go on around you. Your unwavering focus on Loki was almost certainly a symptom of your stupid crush, you knew, but you tried to tell yourself that there was something else. This was team bonding. If anyone needed more chances to bond with the team, it was Loki, wasn’t it? Halfway through lunch, you got up and went to make another plate, taking it, along with your own, over to your towel. 

He looked over at you as you sat, and his hands twitched when you set his plate down before him like maybe he wanted to push it away but had quickly reconsidered. “It’s been a long time since breakfast,” you said thoughtfully and then took a bite of the hot dog that Bruce had grilled. The snap of the casing was especially satisfying out here in the sun. “I didn’t know how you’d take yours, so I just went with mustard. I hope that’s okay.”

He didn’t respond, but at least that meant he didn’t tell you that he hated mustard. You tried not to pay attention to whether he ate, instead focusing on your own plate, but when he did finally pick up his hot dog and take a bite, you had to bite your lip to keep from smiling. He ate every bit of the food that you brought him. That felt like a victory. 

After lunch, several of the others started an impromptu game of beach volleyball. They were all shining skin and glistening muscles, forces of nature leaping and pouncing and shouting at each other. Sam spiked the ball just inches from Thor’s outstretched hands, and Thor wound up falling facefirst into the sand. You couldn’t miss the way Loki snorted at that, and you looked over to grin at him. “Will you go play with me?” you finally asked, something about the look in his eyes giving you just enough courage. “If we go on opposite teams we can both play and still keep things even.” 

The set of Loki’s jaw made your heart sink a little. You were so certain that he’d turn you down, maybe even laugh at the idea. But then he swallowed and got to his feet, and offered his hand to help you up as well. The two of you joined up with the others, slipping easily into the teams with no protests from anyone. That felt like another victory, though this one was more for Loki.

Maybe his competitive nature started slip out. He began to play _hard_ , and eventually had to pull off his shirt. That may have distracted you a little, but how in the world could anyone possibly blame you? You were used to seeing the rest of your male teammates shirtless. They were all strong and impossibly ripped, and most of them spent a lot of time shirtless in the gym. Loki did not have their bulk, but he was incredibly defined. His muscles were long and elegant, making his actions look almost effortless as he stretched to keep the ball off of the sand and then easily sent it flying back towards your team’s side of the net. 

About a hundred years later, when your team finally had to declare Loki’s the winner, you brought him a bottle of water. He had picked up his shirt and shaken off the sand, but, rather than putting it back on, he only used it to wipe his face. And his chest. You pressed the cool bottle into his hand. “To the victor go the spoils,” you murmured and cracked open your own water. “You’re good at that. Too good, maybe. You weren’t using magic, were you?”

When he laughed, there was a warm, musical quality about it that made your heart flutter in your chest. “I do not need to use magic to do well at Midgardian athletics, thank you.” He took a long drink from his bottle, and you were too slow to make yourself look away from the way his Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed. Feverishly, you found yourself longing to slide your tongue along his throat. When you looked up into his face, he was already watching you, and he looked amused. Well, shit.

Desperate for any kind of distraction, you straightened your shoulders and lifted your chin at him. “I don’t know if I believe you. I mean, I know you’re strong, but how could you know anything about volleyball?” You grinned, hoping to show him that you weren’t really serious, but he let his eyes narrow at you anyway. Slowly, he recapped his water and stooped to let it sit in the sand, but then he straightened again and began to advance towards you. The only thing that kept you from flat-out panicking and telling him that it was all just a joke was a certain familiar kind of glint in his eyes. Maybe he knew.

“How _dare_ you doubt me, mortal?” You backed away from him, trying not to laugh even as he continued to follow you after you. When your feet hit the wet sand, when you felt the tide licking around your ankles, you froze, holding your hands up in front of you and laughingly apologizing to him, but that wasn’t enough. He grinned and swung you effortlessly into his arms. Your squeals finally attracted the others’ attention, and even as Loki ran easily into the water, you heard Thor whoop joyously. Loki heaved you into the water, but at the very last moment, you managed to grab his hand and bring him down with you. When you both resurfaced, water pouring down your faces, he was laughing. You threw yourself at him, doing your best to knock him under again, but each time you did, he only wrapped his arms around you and dunked you first. Thor came splashing in, and Clint and Wanda, and your head was above the water just long enough to hear Bucky’s indignant roar as Nat threw him in, too. 

You loved this. The water was a splashing, roiling sea of bodies as you all fought with each other, but even in the teeming mess, you couldn’t be distracted from the feeling of Loki’s hands on you. You drank it in, selfishly committing it to your memory even as you tried not to feel too creepy about the fact that you got to touch his chest, his shoulders. As much strength and elegance as he’d shown during volleyball, he showed a hundred times over as he moved through the water. As you were human—a well-trained and worked-out human, but a mere non-enhanced human nonetheless, you were one of the first to tire. You managed to wrap your arms around Loki’s shoulders from behind, locking your legs around his waist even as you rested your chin on his shoulder and gasped your surrender into his ear. This new position was primarily meant to keep him from being able to easily continue throwing you back under the water, but...man, if his back didn’t feel amazing against your body. “You win,” you said, unable to keep the giddiness out of your voice. “Of course you’re strong enough that you didn’t need to cheat at volleyball. I was so wrong.”

Maybe it was the endorphins from all that exertion. Maybe it was the way the water seemed to keep things private, or the fact that the rest of the team was still largely distracted by laughing and battling each other. But you felt Loki’s hand rest on your leg under the water, effectively preventing you from being able to unwind yourself from around him. His other hand rested on your arm. It was hard to ignore the smell of his skin: clean sweat and sunshine and ocean water and...soap. You couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe he was feeling the same. He leaned his head a bit, to rest it against yours. Surely he had to feel the way that made your heart race.

“I didn’t want to come today,” he said in a low voice. You heard him perfectly. “I’m glad I did.”

You tightened your arms around him, something like a hug, and nodded before lowering your chin to allow it to rest on his shoulder. “I’m glad you did too.”


End file.
